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Lassa fever virus
included in group of Old World arenaviruses
Epidemiology:
- common in West Africa [3]
- rarely seen in the United States [3]
- carried by rodents
- transmitted to humans through contact with urine or droppings of infected rodents [3]
- can be transmitted from person to person through direct contact with a sick person's blood or bodily fluids, through mucous membrane, or through sexual contact [3]
- less likely to be spread from person to person than Ebola virus [3]
- probably not infectious before the onset of symptoms [3]
- diagnosed March 2013 in a Minnesota patient who returned from West Africa [2]
- death of patient returning from Liberia May 2015 [3]
- 43 deaths & 450 ill in Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria, Feb 2018 [4]
Pathology:
- dystroglycan is cellular receptor
Clinical manifestations:
- can produce hemorrhagic symptoms
Laboratory:
- Lassa virus antigen in serum
- Lassa virus serology
Complications:
- 1% fatality [3]
Related
Lassa virus antibody
Lassa virus antigen in serum
Lassa virus IgG in serum
Lassa virus IgM in serum
General
arenavirus
Properties
KINGDOM: virus
GENOME-TYPE: RNA
SINGLE-STRANDED
NEGATIVE-STRAND
CIRCULAR
GENOME-SIZE: 10-14 kB
ENVELOPE: PRESENT
CAPSID-SYMMETRY: HELICAL
References
- Harrison's Principles of Internal Medicine, 14th ed.
Fauci et al (eds), McGraw-Hill Inc. NY, 1998, pg 1066-67
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
CDC Newsroom. Press Release. Friday, April 4, 2014
Lassa Fever Reported in U.S. Traveler Returning from West Africa
http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2014/p0404-lassa-fever.html
- CDC Newsroom. May 25, 2015
Lassa Fever Confirmed in Death of U.S. Traveler Returning from
Liberia.
http://www.cdc.gov/media/releases/2015/p0525-lassa.html
- Adebayo B
More than 40 dead in Lassa fever outbreak in Nigeria.
CNN. Feb 16, 2018
http://www.cnn.com/2018/02/16/health/nigeria-lassa-outbreak-intl
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/ICTV